Retro Ad From August 1987, The Women’s Nike Air Control

“For women who want to get back on their feet.”

A clever usage of the famous painting Whistler’s Mother, with a few tweaks of course. Advertising the Nike Air Control, specifically for women.

Women's Nike Air Control Circa 1987
Women's Nike Air Control Circa 1987

A pretty clever ad by Nike. Nike’s advertising budget must have been massive because nearly every magazine I open has a different 2-page, full-color advertisement. Leave a comment if you enjoyed the ad!

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Retro Ad From March 1989, Avia Brunch

“Does this look like it was designed for standing in brunch lines?”

Wow, a three page ad. Avia was a much stronger force in the running market during this era, and could afford to pay for this sort of advertising. I hope you have a widescreen monitor!

It features the Avia 2100 and the Avia 2090.

Avia Circa March 1989
Avia Circa March 1989

So if you enjoyed the extra-wide ad today, please leave a comment!

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Retro Ad From December 1985, Travel By Air with Nike

“Travel By Air Without Any Reservations”

This ad is pretty cool because it has 20 different shoes in it, counting the men’s and women’s variations.

It features the Epic, men’s and women’s Equinox, men’s and women’s Vector, men’s and women’s Vortex, men’s and women’s Vengeance, 2 colors each in the men’s and womens Pegasus, men’s and women’s Dauntless, Airborne, Air Edge, Axis, Sock Racer, and Zoom Air.

Nike Circa December 1985
Nike Circa December 1985

Neat to see a whole lineup of shoes like that! Enjoy and leave a comment.

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Every “In The Bleachers” Comic About Running and Track and Field

I have painstakingly compiled a list of all the In The Bleachers comics that feature running or track and field jokes. I hope you enjoy the humor!

From August 13, 1996 to October 9, 2011

UPDATED 04/16/2012: Now through March 28, 2012

UPDATED 07/27/2013: Now through July 16, 2013

Steve Moore creates a new comic nearly every day of the year, pretty impressive for a career spanning over 15 years. There are some repeats and recolors of the same comic, but given the subject matter I think that’s acceptable. Enjoy!

1996

Roach Run
Wind Up
Sheep Marathon
False Start

1997

Starting Blocks
Jogger’s Knee (Jogger’s Knee is mentioned, but not just a “running” comic)
Labor 10K
Don’t Look Back
Cramping
Arch Support (Not really running, just feet related)
Armadillo 20-Yard Run
Marathon In-N-Out
120-Meter Midlife Hurdles
Motor-Skills 10K
High Jump
Smoke?
Sand
Hot Shoes
Lung Stop
Dog
Wind Aided 100-Meter
Losing Stinks
Boa Hurdlers
Armadillo Ex-Jocks (sprinting)
Revolutionary Runner
Duck Run
Sheep Marathon 2
Thirsty
Road Rage

1998

10K Fun Crawl
Shot Put
Treadmill Encouragement
Size Matters
Port-A-John
Snack
Cat Pole Vault
Scurry
Drag
Greyhound
Doomsday Cult
Discus
Veg Out
Javelin?
Harmless Dog
Memory
Ticket
Fool

1999

Nikes (Not running, just shoes)
Head Gasket
Falling Arches
Instant Gratification
A Little Help!
Devoured
Schnauzers
Downhill
Kids Crossing
Death Valley
Plank Walk (Walking)
Only 16 Miles

2000

Clamps
40-Yard Dash
400-Meter Hopscotch
Gotta Run
Crocodile
Take It Easy
Discus, Javelin, or Shot Put
Mind Over Matter
Undefeated
Mt. Everest
Dynamite
Coulda, Woulda, Shoulda
Optimism To Pessimism
Javelin
Safe Crossing
Garbo-Loading
Cardio
Blood Stop
Over The Moon
Stationary
Weak And Infirm
World Record
Run With Scissors
(A classic!)

2001

Regrets
Cat Marathon
Stomach Cramps
Merge Left
Whole Ball Of Wax (Could be a lot of sports, but we’ll say they’re runners)
Long Jump
Let Go
Directions
Performance-Enhancing Drugs
Can’t Hold It
Life
10 Seconds Flat
Did (Could be a lot of sports, but we’ll say they’re runners again)
Stuck
Kick
Full Stomach
110-Meter Rat Traps
The Importance Of Stretching
Irontoddler
Lung-Enhancement Surgery
Running Hungry
Hypochondriac 10K

2002

Run For Your Life
Helium
Cheat Sheet
To The Tape
Cruel Hoax
Severely Tested
Forget Something?
Sneakers (Not really running, just shoes)
Mouse High Jump
Tap Water
Lunch Break
Marbles
Cardio (Colored)
Midlife Hurdles (Colored)
Pit Stop
Drag (Colored)
Runners To Your Mark
Directions (Recolored)
Postal 10K
Fourteen
Motivation
Guesstimate
Stampede
Piper
Crossing
Wanna Go For A Run?

2003

Javelin Expert
Burger Stop
Wrong End
Drafting
Air Vault
Battle Stations
Proving Grounds
Hurdles
Easy Boy
Real Close
Forget Something?
Bad Feeling
Blanks
Field Sobriety Test
Explosive Shot Put
Self-Service
2 Seconds
Jogging In Place
Bad Luck
Tune Up
Pillow
Pop
Stand Up
New Record
Port-A-Milky
Bunching Up
Hypochondriac 10K (recolored)
Size Matters (colored)

2004

Life (recolored)
Memory
(colored)
Stick Out Your Neck
You Got A Flat
Schnauzer Off
Wet Runway
Please
Motivational Tool
All Downhill
Practice
Chainsaw
Cramps
Rogue Elephant
Tossed Salad
Starts With A “B”
Rental
Caffeine
Better Finish
Call Back
Another False Start
Lashes
Long Stride
Rottweilers
Discus Dogs
Fast Horse
Second Wind
Psych
Web
Swimming?
Responsibility
Revving
Gnats
Mouse Vault
New Technique
Fastest Pet
Bang
Get Rid Of That Thing
Straggler
Counting Sheep
Snail Hurdles

2005

Resolution
Ticket (Colored)
Waste
Wa(i)ter Stop
Signage
Detour
Smoking Or Non-Smoking?
For The Younger Generation
Not Much Pad
24-Hour Trackside Assistance
Biding Their Time
Pile-Up
Ooze
Why Tracks Have Lanes
Slow Down
Dance Marathon
Track Mapper
Discus
Tied
Clever
Trap
Click
Shoe Warranty
Stray
Running Of The Slugs
Houston, We Have A Problem
Lung-Enhancement Surgery 2
He Got Me!
Arachnophobia
Bad Luck 2
Scuttle
Easy Hurdles

2006

Dreadmill
New Route
Aerobic Downsizing
Camel
Ming Vase
Yellow Flag
Aid Station
Bottle Stop
Lunch Break 2
Tomorrow The Moon
Déjà Vu
Leash
Jogger!
Fear Of Failure
All But One
Scents
Toll
Tap Water
Coho Salmon
Didn’t Train
Impending Disaster
Liftoff
The Wall
Wee, Wee, Wee

2007

Javelin Expert (Recolored)
Get Set…
Drafting (Recolored)
Cemetery
Stop That
Same Design (Shoes)
How High
Attendance
Wrong Way
Concern
Fan
Boing
Too Soon
Wind Shear
Short Celebration
Unusual
Fire Walk (Walking)
Caution
Caught
Boom
Vultures
Flock
Pies
Nerdectomy
How To Run A Marathon (This is a good one)
Black Box
Scooper

2008

Fast Cameraman
What Do I Win?
Baton?
Amok
Negative
Elderly
Can Opener
Hands And Knees
Memory
Disintegrating
Stampede?
Low Bar
Mentality
Stretch
Stalking
Scissors
Spinout
Bad Lanes
Directions Again
Mail
Vend-O-Mat
Easy Hurdles Again
6-Meter Dash
Short Bursts
Long Jump
World Record
Nobody Reads Anymore
Instant Gratification 2
See You Next Fall
Grunion Run (If you’re wondering what grunions are, they’re a fish species that can travel across land)
Slow
Picky

2009

Frogs
Dying Of Thirst
Angry
Cat Marathon (Recolored)
Test Him
Survival Of The Fittest
Shin Splints
Control Freak
Stimulus
Caught
Texting
Information
I Just Go For The Crashes
Ophidiophobic
Nothing To See Here
With Starter
Hurry
Gristle And Bones
Still Gonna Win
We’ve Got A Jumper
More Lungs
Free Agents (Sorta a general sports joke)
Don’t Bother
Weak And Stupid
Might Want To Think That Through
Can’t Miss It
Run Like A Penguin
Witch

2010

Fast Food
Insurance
Crossing
Cleanup Crew
Listen
Glasses
Click Click
Look Before You Leap
Even Easier Hurdles
Never Again (One of my favorites)
Interesting
Flock Of Birds
Let Go
No Cigarettes
Rhino
Short Distances
Shoe Is Untied
Defeatist
Jackrabbit
Big Treadmill
Imagination
Sheep
iPod

2011

Starting Line
Tested
Research
Cruel Hoax (Recolored)
Sit! Stay!
We’re On To You
That One
Track Meets In Hell
Bed
Drug Test
Distant Third
Merrython
Half Hearted
24-7 Infant Relay
Jumper Cables
Arachnophobic 10K
Sign
Virtual
Negotiations
Tortoise
High-Heeled
Merge
Career Ender
Quicksand
Downhill
Middle Age
Under Achieve

2012

Scissors (again)
Milk Stop (again)
Hot
Slug Hurdles
Sharp Pain
Lead or Follow
Gluten Free
Stay
Kick The Can
Trampled
Can He Do That?
Duck Hunting
EDIT (7/27/13)
She’s Cheating
Cliff
Size Matters
Barbed Wire
New Technique
Litigatorade
Get Your T-Shirts
Back Legs
Falling Arches
Shed
Smoking Area
Hurdles
Falling Apart
Vultures
You Are Here
Laps

2013

Ants
Salt Water
Dibs
More Vultures
Addictive
Spine
Headlong
Run In Place
Turbo
World Record
Upright
Caution
Stop Sign
5 More
Sheep Track
Dang
Hazards
Cramps
Power Hurdler
Big Eagle
Salmon Run

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Retro Ad From November 1984, The Reebok Phase 1

“For The Motionally Unstable, Only!”

The Reebok Phase 1 seems to have been a motion control shoe by Reebok, although I don’t know the particulars on it.

The ad comically portrays runners as “unstable” and needing treatment for it.

Reebok Phase 1 Circa November 1984
Reebok Phase 1 Circa November 1984

Seems to have been a pretty good shoe. If you had a pair leave a comment! Or just leave a comment if you enjoyed the ad.

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Retro Ad From June 1986, The Brooks Trilogy

“Think of it as software for your Feet.”

Brooks actually still uses diagonal rollbar technology, a testament to it’s effectiveness.

Brooks Trilogy circa 1986
Brooks Trilogy circa 1986

This is the first example that I’m aware of where a shoe used a tri-density motion control cushioning system. Pretty cool if you ask me. We actually weren’t familiar with this shoe, but if you know anything about it, please share.

Leave a comment, as always!

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail